There is a conflict of interest involve. He can't advice people to buy while he is disposing. TTB record is good, but, some of his actions has not been honest and thus could not be trusted. I browse through ICAP once when they are making promotion, the material they are providing is a bit misleading.

For those who are interested on the other side of ICAP : http://whereiszemoola.blogspot.com/search/label/iCapital

LOL...how do you know whether Moolah is totally different class than TTB? Have you seen his result? We can't assume that, just because someone like to blow his own trumpet, he has to be the best. I manage to get a copy of ICAP to read, the things in the magazine, it is like a marketing book, making misleading comparison between ICAP and other stocks and saying how good ICAP is. But, I have seen a copy only, not sure whether every single edition is the same, if it is the same, I wonder why would anyone actually buy this newsletter.

Moolah has done a lot of good to retail investors, bringing us the other side of the stories. I did not see anything wrong with that. TTB is bullish, before, during and after the crash. When you always take the same stand, you are bound to be correct.

TTB is wrong to publish one set of recommendation on his newsletter while doing the opposite action on his funds. There is no two ways about it. Let's take away your admiration for TTB and replace ICAP with CIMB, if CIMB analyst is selling his stocks while calling you to buy, won't you feel angry? Now replace that CIMB with TTB..

This post has been edited by the snowball: Mar 31 2011, 10:12 PM

I did not say who is better than who. I am just saying that without seeing Moolah record, we cannot conclude that TTB is better than Moolah. It is an answer to your allegation that TTB and Moolah is off different class. Please read the comment in the context of your own comment made previously.

I have disclose previously that I have read a copy of ICAP newsletter. I am unimpress with the research. It is more like a marketing book to me. I am not sure that particular edition of ICAP, the June 2010 version is in any way representative of all the ICAP. Please again read properly.

TTB record is good but it does not absolve him from being unethical about some of his stocks recommendation. Does a student with good grades means that by default he earn the right to be a naughty?

On the materials, here you go : http://whereiszemoola.blogspot.com/2008/08...rent-issue.html Read other stuff on ICAP near that date, should touch on similar issue.

This is just not the only issue. There are issues with his global funds. Another blogger- AhYap raise this issue : http://www.ahyap.com/blog/tan-teng-boo.php

Plus the respond from ICapital : http://www.ahyap.com/blog/ttb-performance-fee.php

He did not address the issue head on. He is trying to sounds like he is addressing the issue but in actual fact, it is not. It is a sign that he actually has no respond to the issue.

Well, we can't judge someone vis-a-vis another person by just looking at one limited sample of one economic event. In fact, Moolah views is shared by and still shared by a lot of smart hedge fund managers-among them Klarman which Buffett said if he were ever to retire, Klarman would be one of them that he would have chosen to manage his money.

It is absolutely fine that ICapital sell stock to rebalance the portfolio. What is not fine is that, you are doing the opposite thing that you are advising. As stated on the link, he sold off the entire position in some stocks while recommending a hold on his newsletter. Given his fine record, which I do not doubt as it is quite impressive (but certainly not the top 5 in the world as he claims, there are a few equally good or better manager even in Asia itself), a lot of people rely on his recommendation. If he were to put a sell call on the stock at the same time that he is selling, don't you think that he would have to dispose his shares at a lower price given other of his followers are selling? Wouldn't that affect his good record? Wouldn't this lower the NAV of his shares thus his management fees? Would it be fair to the people that rely on his newsletter for advise to receive this sort of treatment?

If TTB feels that the stock is already not worth to hold on to in his funds and sell all his holdings, he should do the same too on his newsletter and recommend a sell rather than a hold. He should direct his newsletter reader to his highest conviction picks. By not recommending a sell on the stock he has sold and not directing the readers to his highest conviction pick, he is (i) making his exit price higher due to the lack of seller and (ii) making his entry price lower due to the lack of buyers. Isn't (i) and (ii) the main gripe of fundmental investors against quant funds as they are front running other investors?

There is a reason why there is a "China Wall" between the fund management industry and the equity research industry, it is to prevent this sort of conflict from happening.

As usual, your view may be different...

It has nothing wrong because the fund manager and the research house is a different person and a different entity. Public Mutual and Public Research is independent from each other. What the equity researcher does, do not benefit the fund manager and vice versa.

As illustrated with my point (i) and (ii) previously, the conflicting research report that he publish and the actions he is taking in his funds is boasting his performance and management fees. Since you are a fan of TTB, which stock would you rather buy, the stocks he has sold out or the stock that he just bought?

TTB prides himself in running a concerntrated, high conviction portfolio. When he sells, it is not his high conviction picks anymore. People read his newsletter for his high convictions pick, not a pick that are not in his high conviction pick anymore. In addition, due to the limited fund size of most of his readers (let's face it, very little people can have a USD300mil portfolio), there is lesser need and lesser funds for diversification, ppl need his highest conviction pick, not any pick.

The fact is, TTB is front running his newsletter reader, charging excessive fund management fees on his global funds...

If this sort of thing happen in US, I think SEC would have at least send a letter to question the apparent lack of seperation between their newsletter(advisory) business and their fund management business.

This post has been edited by the snowball: Apr 1 2011, 01:07 AM

Who do you think is the one that is making the buy and call decision? ICapital staff turnover is very high, do you want some inexperience ppl to make those decision? You trust a fresh grad with a buy and sell call? The final decision to buy and sell remains with TTB, not anyone else.

If it is really manage by different group of staff independent of TTB major say, you will be looking into portfolio overlap between the two newsletter, why did ICap newsletter and ICap fund management has so much overlap in portfolio?

No matter how you see it, there is a question of conflict of interest.

Haha, this are the few places I visit lo..but I comment here more, but, still not regular though...